The Last Picnic
by Akina Rose Sumora
Summary: Why are they so sad on such a lovely day? A oneshot with KuramaxOC.


The Last Picnic

Just a oneshot involving Kurama with my OC Akina. Maybe one day I'll write about all the events

that led up to this one-they have an extensive history in my mind! It's my first fanfic, reviews are

welcome! An interesting thing about this story is that I set it to music, so if you happen to have the

Please Twins! CD that came with the DVD boxset of the series, play the indicated song during each

part of the story! This isn't required to read the story though. Oh, and I do not own Kurama from Yu

Yu Hakusho nor the music from Please Twins! I do own Akina, since she's my original character.

Enjoy!

Song: Second Flight

Akina packed the rest of the food in the picnic basket and sighed. She had a feeling that this day

would mean a lot to her-she would never want to forget it in that case. Or forget anything, for that

matter. As she walked through the living room on her way to the front door, she paused, seeing a

photograph on a table. That particular snapshot always brought a smile to her face. Making sure she

had everything, she left the house with her food. Humming happily, Akina started the walk to the train

station.

Likewise, Kurama was doing pretty much the same at his mother's house, only he didn't use a

basket. When he finished, he pulled a letter from his pocket and read it over. Squeezing his eyes shut,

his heart trembled with the thought of what would happen later. But for now, he resolved, he'd have

to do his best to banish the thought from his mind. That way, he could enjoy himself until then. When

he looked up, he saw a photograph on the refrigerator, such a happy moment captured there that it

nearly brought tears to his eyes. Stuffing the letter back into his pocket, he collected his things and left

the house.

They both walked to their respective train stations-Akina smiling and happy, Kurama grave and

silent. They rode on different trains to the station where they were supposed to meet, each thinking

about where their lives would go after that day. At one point, though they didn't know it, they were

thinking about the same thing: the same night, the same moment, where Akina had said something that

had changed both their lives.

Kurama reached the designated station first, and turned his face to the breeze, watching the clouds

as he waited for Akina, also dreading the moment when he would see her. Presently, another train

pulled up, and he heard her voice calling his name. He took a deep breath, and turned to meet her.

She was running toward him, picnic basket in one hand, waving with the other. About to apologize

for making him wait, she suddenly noticed the serious look on his face. Akina was puzzled, and for a

moment they simply stood staring at each other. And then, she understood. Kurama noticed this from

the shocked expression on her face, and implored her with his eyes not to say anything about it yet.

She understood this as well, and smiling up at him, took his food and placed it in the basket with her

own. Then they left the station, heading for the countryside.

Song: Summer Sky

They walked along a riverbank, enjoying the scenery and fresh air. Neither one spoke much,

because it wasn't often that they got a day to themselves like this. Plus, both of them wanted to

impress as much of the memory of this day in their minds as possible. At first, Kurama had taken the

picnic basket and walked behind Akina with it, but she soon insisted on carrying it to give his arms a

rest. Kurama protested, however, and would only allow her to carry one handle while he held the

other. So now they walked side by side, with the basket between them.

When the sun was just showing signs of being past noon, they stopped under a shady tree to eat

their lunch. Akina ate some of the food Kurama brought, and Kurama ate some of Akina's.

Afterward, they both sat still for a while, resting and watching the river flow by. Akina leaned her

head against Kurama's shoulder, and he put an arm around her waist. Each of them were thinking of

happier days in the past...

Kurama thought of the day, some years back, when he had first met Akina. What an awkward

situation they had been in that night, what with Yusuke and Kuwabara half drunk and the four of them

(with Hiei) having to unexpectedly show up at her house. He smiled to himself when he remembered

how frantic Akina had been, rushing around to find them places to sleep, and making sure her parents

didn't wake up. Kurama had been very grateful for her kindness, and told her so before she left them

for the night. Akina had blushed, and only replied that there was nothing she wouldn't do for a fellow

classmate. Even then, it took some time before Kurama expected that there was a hidden meaning in

her words.

Akina found herself remembering that moonlit night where she and Kurama had been the last to

leave the group and head home after a study session. How they had sat on the balcony together,

enjoying the late-summer air, and then were attacked suddenly by stray demons. It was too cramped

up there, and before much had been done, Akina had been pulled over the side and fallen to the

ground. And as she fell, she was afraid, and shouted up her confession to Kurama, who looked over

the edge in despair. And then, when the demons were gone and he had rushed down to help her, she

was afraid to look at him and ran inside. But he had stopped her, and made her listen. He had heard

her confession, and gave her his own. And then...Akina had felt for the first moment of her life that

she wasn't alone.

They both wished that those times could go on forever, like this moment.

They were soon on their way again; however, they made no signs of turning back home. Instead,

they continued in the same direction they had been going, even though it was getting late. Now,

Kurama held the much lighter picnic basket, and led the way along the path, holding Akina's hand.

Song: Summer Sky (sorrow)

All of a sudden, the sky began to darken. Looking up, they saw clouds gathering across the sky.

Glancing at each other, Akina and Kurama knew they must find shelter soon, for it looked as if a

storm were brewing. So they began to run, looking for any sort of haven from the coming storm.

The rain soon began to fall, coming down hard and fast. They were getting soaked. Finally, they

spotted a tree in the distance. Kurama grabbed Akina's hand and pulled her along, for she was

slowing down. When they at last reached the tree, Kurama looked up as if to say, "Well, it's better

than nothing." Then he glanced over at Akina, who had fallen to her knees upon reaching the tree.

She was breathing heavily, her wet hair hanging down over her face. Kurama walked over to help her

up, but when she was on her feet, she tore her arm from his grasp and slowly wandered out from

under the shelter of tree branches. This puzzled Kurama-Akina was very sensitive to rain, and hated

it. So why would she want to stand in it? He began to follow her, but stopped when he saw how she

was positioned. Her left hand-the hand that bore the proof of her sensitivity to rain-was bunched into

a fist, clamped tightly to her heart, while her right hand gripped the elbow of her left arm. Suddenly,

Kurama understood: she hadn't wanted to come here so quickly, to end this journey sooner. Feeling

a great sadness for her, he slowly moved forward until he was standing behind her, and put his arms

around her shoulders. That's when Akina began to shake all over, but not just from the chill the rain

was giving her. She was sobbing.

At this point, Kurama remembered what had happened to make Akina scared of the rain. A

powerful demon she'd fought had put a curse on her before it died, and months went by before it was

lifted. By that time, the curse's power was so strong over her that she had almost died. Whenever it

rained, she would be in constant pain, sometimes not even able to leave her bed. Even now that the

danger was past, rain still weakened her. And what's more, while it rains, she can never sleep

anymore. Something inside her always knew. Akina would always wake at the first sign of rain,

unable to sleep again until it stopped. And if it rained during the day, she would be listless, have no

appetite, and her energy would be drained. Lately, these symptoms had been worse than usual, and

now Kurama knew why. Knowing what would soon come to her had put extra stress on her, and the

threat of being alone again...nothing could have hurt her more.

Kurama turned her around and tightened his arms around her. He tried to think of something to say

to her, but then realized there was nothing that would comfort her in the situation he would soon be

putting her in. So he just held Akina as she cried, the both of them standing in the rain as night came

upon them, until the rain finally stopped. And Akina, weak with sadness and faint from lack of energy

thanks to the rain, cried herself to sleep in Kurama's arms.

Song: Miina Miyafuji B

By the time Akina awoke, the clouds had cleared. She was laying beneath the tree. Kurama was

standing by the riverbank, looking up at the full moon. He seemed to sense that Akina had awakened,

and turned towards her. She saw the look on his face, and something broke inside her. She

scrambled up and ran to him as though his life-or hers-were in danger. Stopping just in front of

Kurama, she looked up into his eyes, and they both knew it was time.

Akina didn't cry again, as Kurama had expected her to do. Instead, she took his hands in hers, and

stepped closer to him. After standing still like that for a moment, gazing at each other, Kurama freed

one of his hands from her clinging grasp and put it to her face, brushing her still-wet hair out of her

eyes. Akina made a small sound like a gasp when his hand touched her cold cheek. At that moment,

both their hearts seemed to skip a beat at once. In a sudden burst of passion, Kurama threw his arms

around Akina, drawing her into his warm embrace and pressing his cheek to her hair. After another

moment of them standing there, holding each other tightly, Akina looked up into his eyes again.

They were full of sorrow, just as hers were. She willed herself silently not to cry, and tipped her

face up to his.

Kurama nearly lost his composure then, but he squeezed his eyes shut and met Akina's lips with his

own.

They both remembered the same memory then: their first kiss. That summer night when each knew

the other's feelings. How Akina had been disappointed that they could not go out to the balcony

because there were people on the sidewalk outside her home. How Kurama told her it didn't matter

to him. And then...when they sat on the loveseat under the window, bathed in the moonlight, and

then...

That was the beginning. But this...this was the end.

Kurama released himself from Akina's grasp then and turned away. He whispered one word, and

vanished into the darkness, leaving a lonely, grief-stricken Akina behind.

Song: Tears to Tomorrow

She remained by the riverbank for a long time afterward, as if she could still see Kurama walking

away. But she did not cry. When dawn began to lighten the sky, she finally roused herself. Gathering

up the picnic basket, she began her long, slow walk toward home. She walked without stopping,

keeping her steady pace all the way. When Akina passed the tree where they had eaten their lunch

together, she hesitated for a moment, then continued on her way without looking back. It wasn't until

she reached the train station, at sunset, that she finally turned and looked back the way she came.

Even then, she would not let herself shed a tear. Instead, she silently boarded the train and rode

home. And all the way, the only thing Akina could hear was Kurama's final word, echoing over and

over in her mind...

"Farewell..."

When Akina reached home that night, she was so tired that she fell asleep on the living room couch

without even undressing. And although there was no rain, the sound of it haunted her dreams-and her

nightmares. She dreamed of every happy moment she had ever shared with Kurama, and had

nightmares about all the people she feared coming to hurt her and take away what was most precious

to her. The presence of rain haunted them all.

She was awakened early in the morning by someone knocking at the front door-and a rain shower

that had just begun to fall. Hearing the knock again, Akina's face trembled, but she composed it, not

wanting to cry even now. Heaving a sigh to let out some of the emotions racing around inside her, she

got up and went to the front door to receive the news she had known would come all along. And

when those words at last came to her ears, she fell to her knees and let the tears she had been holding

back burst free.

The tears fell as hard as the rain...


End file.
